Monday Morning Devotion-November 12, 2018

The Trouble I've Seen

Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each Day has enough trouble of its own.  Matthew 6:34.

            The African-American Spiritual song, "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen," first published in 1867, has had different recorded versions over many years by such famous musical personalities as Lena Horne, Louis Armstrong, Bing Crosby, Sam Cooke, Harry James, Marian Anderson and others:  Here are the second and third verses:

                        "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen

                          Nobody knows but Jesus

                          Nobody knows the trouble I've seen,

                          Glory Hallelujah"

                          Sometimes I'm up

                          Sometimes I'm down

                          Oh yes, Lord

                          Sometimes I'm almost to the ground

                          Oh yes Lord."

            So what trouble have you seen?  The answer is probably something like: "How much

time to do have?  Pull up a chair and sit awhile."

            The world is full of trouble.  For example, in his book "Who is This Man?" John Ortberg points out the fix that our world is in.  "We have lost digital innovator Steve Jobs, comedian Bob Hope and country singer Johnny Cash.  So now we have no Jobs, no Cash and no Hope." So we got problems! :)

            Let's hope God will spare Kevin Bacon! :) (www.woodsidechurch.org)

            In our scripture for today the key word that Jesus uses is "worry."  You've heard of "hurry sickness."  Seems that at times we feel so rushed to get things done that it can take the form of a "worry sickness."

            We take the advice of the Red Queen to Alice in Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland:

"My dear…here we must run as fast as we can, just to stay in place and if you wish to go anywhere you must run twice as fast as that."  That's the mentality that creeps in for us at times.  We worry about getting swamped and how that will shape our future.

            So, to have a chance at overcoming those "troubles we've seen" we need to win the battle over worry.  That may take a little creativity.

            "A man was constantly worrying that somebody was under his bed. He went to a Counselor who was willing to help him, but at a high fee, over many months. A few weeks later the Counselor met the man on the street and asked him why he had not returned. The man replied, "I met a friend who gave me some great advice for free. It worked perfectly'. The Counselor asked what advice had been given him and the man replied, 'He told me to cut the legs of the bed down to ground level"! ("Winning the Battle over Worry" www.sermoncentral.com.)

            Needless worry?  Silly solution?  Perhaps, but it worked. The things we focus on that cause us so much trouble are usually those we fear that we will have to face in the future.  Where is my life heading if this happens, or that takes control?  How can I keep that from happening?  What steps can I take?  Will that be enough?  What am I gonna do?

            In "Jesus Always" by Sarah Young, Jesus advises us; "You can expect to encounter some trouble every day.  I want you to realize that the Lord wants to help you handle calmly and confidently the difficulties that come your way.  These events don't surprise Him.  He knows everything.  He is fully available to guide you and comfort you as you go through turbulent times."

            That's our assurance that we shouldn't get sucked into needless worrying.  Yes, there are going to be problems to deal with each day.  Count on it.  That's life. But, if we spend an inordinate amount of time worrying about tomorrow and don't deal with today's worries…VaVoom! What is tomorrow gonna look like?  We will have today's problems piled on to the new ones that will crop up tomorrow.

            The good news is that Jesus is with us, looking over our shoulder.  He's got our back and when we need help and ask for it the Holy Spirit springs into action.

            This is not to say that we disregard the future all together.  The Lord never tells us not to plan for a future.  We don't want the future to just grab hold of us and we end up any-old-way.  We have to make thoughtful, solid plans that are basically written in pencil because they might need to change as times change.

            By taking care of today's business---tackling those troubles and turning them into victories we diminish future worries and deal with them when we get there.  When we do get to the future (and that is, in some ways a catchall term because what and when is the future?) but things will look brighter if today's troubles are not tagging along, as yet unresolved.

            Now here is the good news.  "The Lord continues to train us to focus on His Presence in the present."  So, when we tag team today's problems by seeking His lead and applying it to today's troubles then this not only helps us today but, in the future, as well. 

            That's why we focus on today's problems, not tomorrow's problems until they get here.

            In Romans 12:12 we are instructed: "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."   Then today's troubles don't seem as unbeatable anymore and we will reap the benefits of this kind of attitude in the future as well.

Prayer:  Lord we ask for you to guide us in resolving today's troubles.  We know that tomorrow will have more, but they will be less daunting because of your help today.

Amen!